Experimental study on the performance of in-cabin ventilation system

Abstract

Parking a car under the hot sun with all windows closed could increase in-cabin temperature as high as 70 degrees C. For such situation, human occupancy will exposed to thermal shock and inconvenience when embarking the vehicle. Another concerned of this accumulated heat gain is the effect of gas emitted by the interior material which mostly is made of vinyl. These experimental studies try to look the possibilities of bringing down the temperature and hence to suit human habitation. In this study, two methods were implemented and they are by creating fresh air change and introducing evaporative cooling by generating water mist in the air flow for further enhancement of temperature drop. Fully automated control strategy was used based on in-cabin temperature activation by the assistance of electronic control unit (ECU). Observation was made and compare for original car condition and the one equipped with In-Cabin Ventilation (IVS). The result shows the car cabin temperature can reach as high as 65 degrees C without ventilation. With fresh charged of air and evaporative cooling, temperature drops to a range of 40 to 50 degrees C.